SRI AUROBINDO
Hymns to the Mystic Fire
Riks of Madhuchchhandas
Translation and Notes: 1.1.1-5
1.1.1
अ॒ग्निमी॑ळे पु॒रोहि॑तं य॒ज्ञस्य॑ दे॒वमृ॒त्विजं॑ ।
होता॑रं रत्न॒धात॑मं ॥
agním īḷe puráḥ-hitam yajñásya devám ṛtvíjam ǀ
hótāram ratna-dhā́tamam ǁ
Rik 1. ईळे (īḷe): to praise, in the ritualistic sense; but as a secondary root of ई (ī) ईळ् (īḷ) meant to seek, go towards, attain, desire, adore, pray, ask for (cf. मातरमन्नमैट्ट, mātaramannamaiṭṭa, III. 48. 3). The former senses have been lost and only “to desire”, “pray” or “ask for” are left in later Sanskrit; but the other senses must have existed, as the idea of desiring, asking is never a primary sense of any root, but derived figuratively from the physical sense “to go, seek, approach”. We may therefore render ईळे (īḷe), either “seek”, “desire”, “adore” or “pray to”.
पुरोहितम् (purohitam): Sayana — “Purohita”, or else “placed in the front of the sacrifice as the āhavanīya fire”. The Purohita of the Veda is the representative power in the sacrifice who stands in front of the consciousness and the action and conducts it. This is always the force of the “placing in front” which is so common an idea in the hymns. Normally, this place belongs to Agni who leads the sacrifice.
देवम् (devam): Sayana — दानादिगुणयुक्तम् (dānādiguṇayuktam). Sayana’s dealing with the word Deva is peculiar. Sometimes he renders it simply “god”, sometimes he gives it some root values, दान (dāna), देवन (devana), sometimes he makes it mean the priest. There is not a single passage in the Veda where the ordinary sense “god”, “divine being” does not give a clear and sufficient and the best sense. No doubt, the Vedic poets never left out of sight its root meaning: the gods are the Shining Ones, the Lords of Light as are the Dasyus the Dark or Black Ones, the sons of Darkness.
ऋत्विजम् (ṛtvijam): “He who sacrifices at the right season” is the outward or ritualistic sense; but ऋतु (ṛtu), in the Veda, as we shall see, is the order of the truth, its arranged law, time, circumstance. Agni is the representative priest who sacrifices according to the law, order, season of the Ritam.
होतारम् (hotāram): Sayana — “because he utters the Mantra” and he quotes अहं होता स्तौमि (ahaṃ hotā staumi); but he renders it sometimes आह्वाता (āhvātā), sometimes होमनिष्पादकः (homaniṣpādakaḥ), sometimes gives us the choice. Undoubtedly, होता (hotā) is the priest of the oblation, who gives the offering, हु (hu) to offer, and not हू (hū) to call. The hymn was an attendant circumstance of the offering, therefore the invocation or praise might also fall to the part of the होता (hotā); but in the system of the Rig-veda the proper name for the reciter of the Mantra is ब्रह्मा (brahmā). Agni is the होतृ (hotṛ), Brihaspati the ब्रह्मा (brahmā).
रत्न (ratna): Sayana — यागफलरूपाणां रत्नानामतिशयेन धारयितारं पोषयितारं वा (yāgaphalarūpāṇāṃ ratnānāmatiśayena dhārayitāraṃ poṣayitāraṃ vā). धा (dhā) to hold and to nourish (cf. धात्री, dhātrī, nurse). But in other passages he takes रत्नं = रमणीयं धनं (ratnaṃ = ramaṇīyaṃ dhanaṃ) which shows that he took it to mean literally “that which is delightful” and made it = wealth, as he makes द्युम्न (dyumna) = that which is shining, and renders it “wealth”. We need not follow him. रत्नं (ratnaṃ) means “delight” or Ananda (cf. रम्, रतिः, रण्, रण्व, राध्, रञ्ज्, ram, ratiḥ, raṇ, raṇva, rādh, rañj, etc.), just as द्युम्नम् (dyumnam) means “light”, धा (dhā) is to hold or else to place.
Translation: Ritualistic
I praise Agni, the Purohita1 of the sacrifice, the god2, the Ritwik, the Hota who holds very much wealth.
Translation: Psychological
I seek the God-Will, the Priest set in front of our sacrifice, the divine offerer who sacrifices in the order of the truth, who disposes utterly the delight.
1.1.2
अ॒ग्निः पूर्वे॑भि॒र्ऋषि॑भि॒रीड्यो॒ नूत॑नैरु॒त ।
स दे॒वाँ एह व॑क्षति ॥
agníḥ pū́rvebhiḥ ṛ́ṣi-bhiḥ ī́ḍyaḥ nū́tanaiḥ utá ǀ
sáḥ devā́n ā́ ihá vakṣati ǁ
Rik 2. ऋषिः (ṛṣiḥ): lit. “seeker, attainer”, so “knower”, from ऋष् (ṛṣ) to go. इह देवान् (iha devān): the divine powers into the mortal life and mortal being. वक्षति (vakṣati) = वह् + स + ति (vah + sa + ti). This स (sa) seems to have been either frequentative in force, “he constantly or habitually bears”, or intensive, “he entirely bears”, or desiderative, “he wills or intends to bear”. From the latter sense we have the use of स् (s) for the future, cf. नी (nī), नेष्यामि (neṣyāmi), Gr. luō, I loose, lusō, I shall loose, and English, I will go, where the desiderative “will = wish, intend” has acquired the sense of a simple future.
Translation:
The God-Will is desirable as to the ancient sages, so to the new, for it is he that bringeth here the gods.
1.1.3
अ॒ग्निना॑ र॒यिम॑श्नव॒त्पोष॑मे॒व दि॒वेदि॑वे ।
य॒शसं॑ वी॒रव॑त्तमं ॥
agnínā rayím aśnavat póṣam evá divé-dive ǀ
yaśásam vīrávat-tamam ǁ
Rik 3. अश्नवत् (aśnavat): Sayana — प्राप्नोति (prāpnoti), but the form gives a certain semi-imperative sense or the idea of a rule of action or law of occurrence. “He shall attain.” अश् (aś) to possess, have, obtain, enjoy; Greek echō, I have.
यशसं (yaśasaṃ): Sayana — दानादिना यशोयुक्तं (dānādinā yaśoyuktaṃ), so “famous”; but “a famous and men-fullest wealth” seems an absurd way of talking. यश् (yaś) is literally to go, strive towards, attain; here it means success, fame; also from another sense “to shine” = “splendour”; it is connected in sense with या (yā), यत् (yat), 
यस् (yas). We have in the Veda रयि (rayi), wealth or felicity, often described as expansive, pervading, breaking down obstacles on the way. There is therefore no inappropriateness or violence in rendering it “enjoyment that attains” or “victorious riches”.
वीरवत्तमम् (vīravattamam): Sayana — अतिशयेन पुत्रभृत्यादिवीरपुरुषोपेतम् (atiśayena putrabhṛtyādivīrapuruṣopetam). It is absurd to take वीर = पुत्र (vīra = putra) as Sayana does; it means “men, heroes, strengths” and is often the equivalent of नृ (nṛ) which is never used for servants in the Rig-veda.
रयिम् (rayim): There are two words, रयि (rayi) from रि (ri) to go and रयि (rayi) from रि (ri) to attain, enjoy. The latter means “enjoyment” or the things enjoyed, “felicity, prosperity, riches”. The former sense is found in the Upanishad where रयि (rayi), movement or matter is opposed to प्राण (prāṇa), life.
Translation: Ritualistic
By Agni one attains a wealth daily increasing, famous and most full of men.
Translation: Psychological
By the God-Will one shall enjoy a felicity that shall increase day by day, victorious, fullest of hero-powers.
1.1.4
अग्ने॒ यं य॒ज्ञम॑ध्व॒रं वि॒श्वतः॑ परि॒भूरसि॑ ।
स इद्दे॒वेषु॑ गच्छति ॥
ágne yám yajñám adhvarám viśvátaḥ pari-bhū́ḥ ási ǀ
sáḥ ít devéṣu gacchati ǁ
Rik 4. अध्वरम् (adhvaram): Sayana — हिंसारहितम् (hiṃsārahitam), because it is not destroyed by the Rakshasas, from अ (a) privative + dhvara (ध्वृ, dhvṛ to hurt). But अध्वर (adhvara) is used by itself to mean sacrifice and it is quite impossible that the word “unhurt” used by itself can have come to mean sacrifice. It must 
express some essential quality of the sacrifice or it could not thus have been singled out. It is a notable fact that अध्वर (adhvara) is continually used for the sacrifice when there is a question of the sacrifice travelling or moving on the path towards the gods, as here. I therefore take अध्वर (adhvara) from an original root अध् (adh) to move and connect it with अध्वन् (adhvan), path; it means the moving or travelling sacrifice, the sacrifice regarded as a pilgrimage of the soul or its gifts towards the gods.
Translation: Ritualistic
O Agni, the unhurt sacrifice that thou encompassest on all sides, that goes to the gods.
Translation: Psychological
O God-Will, whatsoever sacrifice in the path thou encompassest with thy being on every side, that indeed arrives to the gods.
1.1.5
अ॒ग्निर्होता॑ क॒विक्र॑तुः स॒त्यश्चि॒त्रश्र॑वस्तमः ।
दे॒वो दे॒वेभि॒रा ग॑मत् ॥
agníḥ hótā kaví-kratuḥ satyáḥ citráśravaḥ-tamaḥ ǀ
deváḥ devébhiḥ ā́ gamat ǁ
Rik 5. कविक्रतुः (kavikratuḥ): Sayana takes कवि (kavi) here = क्रान्त (krānta) and क्रतुः (kratuḥ) = either knowledge or work. It means then the priest whose work or whose knowledge moves. But there is absolutely no reason to take कवि (kavi) in any other than its natural and invariable sense, कवि (kavi) is the seer, the one who has the divine or supramental knowledge. क्रतु (kratu): from कृ (kṛ) or rather old root क्र (kra) to divide, to do, make, shape, work. From the sense “divide” comes that of the discerning mind, Sayana’s प्रज्ञान (prajñāna); cf. Greek kritos, judge etc.; and this is the sense of karuthi in Tamil which means mind. But from the sense “to do” क्रतु (kratu) means (1) work, (2) power of work, strength, cf. Greek kratos, strength, (3) will or working force of the mind. For this last sense cf. Isha Upanishad क्रतो कृतम् स्मर (krato kṛtam smara) where the collocation क्रतो कृतम् (krato kṛtam) shows that that power of the mind is meant which conducts or dictates the work or action. Agni is the divine Seer-Will that works with the perfect supramental knowledge.
सत्यः (satyaḥ): Sayana explains “true in its fruits”; but the collocation of “seer-will” and श्रवस् (śravas), inspired knowledge, indicates rather the sense “true in his being” and therefore “true in knowledge”, श्रवस् (śravas), and “in will” क्रतुः (kratuḥ). श्रवस् (śravas) is the supramental knowledge called the Truth, ऋतम् (ṛtam), the Vijnana of the Upanishads. कविक्रतुः (kavikratuḥ) means having the will that is full of that knowledge, the vijñānamaya will, the divine ājñāna, सत्यः (satyaḥ) means “vijñānamaya in his substance”.
चित्रश्रवस्तमः (citraśravastamaḥ): Sayana — ‘having most varied kinds of fame’,— an insipid and meaningless epithet for a god. श्रवस् (śravas) is used like श्रुति (śruti) to indicate the inspired hymn; it must therefore be capable of meaning inspired knowledge. There are two kinds of supramental knowledge, दृष्टि (dṛṣṭi) and श्रुति (śruti), sight and hearing, revelation and inspiration, but श्रवस् (śravas) is usually used to indicate the knowledge gained by the supramental faculties.
Translation: Ritualistic
Agni, the priest, who sets in motion the knowledge (or work), true in his fruit, very varied in his fame, may he come with the gods.
Translation: Psychological
The God-Will, Priest of our offering, true in his being, with the will of the seer, with richest variety of inspired knowledge, may he come to us divine with the powers divine.